Final Assesment for Vanishing Acts (8 Quotes)

Quotes:

1)"You can't exist in the world without leaving a piece of yourself behind" (Picoult 1).
This quote is the first sentence of the book, and the underlying theme throughout the entire novel. This is a very profound statement because it's one hundred percent true. Everyone touches the world in some way or another, whether its something as small as picking an apple from a tree, to something as large as rallying for women's suffrage.

2)"'Andrew Hopkins?' the second officer says. "We have a warrant for your arrest as a fugitive from justice, in conjunction with the kidnapping of Bethany Matthews'" (Picoult 25).
The significance of this quote is that this was the moment when Delia's life changed forever. She no longer knows who she really is, nor who she maybe once was. It makes her question the people and realtionships in her life. Who can she trust? Who is her real family? This event is the basis of the plot, and, therefore, I believe it is of great importance.

3)"I don't know which one of us reaches for the other, but suddenly I am in her arms, a place that I had to imagine my entire life. Her hands run over my hair and my back, as if she were trying to make sure I'm real. I try to narrow my mind to a sliver of recognition, but it's hard to know whether this feels familiar because I remeber it, or because I so badly want to" (Picoult 138)
This passage relates the reunion between Delia and her mother, after 28 years of being apart. This is the moment Delia has dreamed of her entire life, the moment of knowing her mother existed. I can relate to this quote in that sometimes I want so bad to believe something, that it starts to become true in my mind, even if it's unrealistic or incorrect. Delia does the same thing with embracing her mother. She wants it to be familiar so bad, that she starts thinking she recognizes it.

4)"'Eric,' Delia asks, 'did my father say anything else about me?' Her question is clear as a bell; the cell phone reception is crystalline. But I hold the phone away from my ear. I make static noises. 'Dee, can you hear me? I'm going under some power lines...' 'Eric?' 'I'm losing you,' I say, and I hang up while she is still talking" (Picoult 181).
This quote jumped out at me right away. I noticed at once that it is a perfect example of symbolism of Delia and Eric's relationship. When Eric says "I'm losing you" he means he's losing her (supposedly) on the line, but I take it to mean he's losing her relationship wise. Plus, once you start lying to your spouse about anything, well, that can't be good. This event foreshadows troubles to come in their relationship.

5)"When you're a parent you find yourself looking at the unknown that is your child, trying to find a piece of yourself inside her, because sometimes that is what it takes to stake a claim. I remember watching you making muddy nixtures in the sandbox, and wondering if a love of chemistry was something you might be born with. I remember listening to your tearful recollection of the monster in your nightmare, trying to see whether it resembled me" (Picoult 54).
I really like this quote because it helped me realize that Andrew really is a good man and a good father. He cares enough about Delia to worry about scaring her away, by being the monster she sees in her dreams. He doesn't want to be that man, he doesn't want to lose her love. I thought this quote was really powerful and it was definitely one I remembered through out the book. This quote shows Andrew's true character, and, in the end, proves to be a perfect description of the only family Delia really has. Family is not a matter of blood, but of relationships cherished forever, family is about love.

6)"What is right, in the end, is not always what it seems to be, and some rules are better broken. But what about when those rules happen to be laws?" (Picoult 261).
I feel like this passage is also one of the bases of the book. It is one of the themes presented continuously throughout the book. Eric is forced to choose between the law and the best interests of his family. He chooses to go with his family, even if it means breaking some of the rules. This passage is important because it brings this idea into light for the readers, helping them to recognize the conflicts faced by characters (law vs. what's really right) in later parts of the book.

7)"Eric kisses me so tenderly that it unravels me. I kiss him back, trying to find the same depth of faith. I kiss him back, although I can still taste Fitz, like a stolen candy tucked high against my cheek, sweet when I least expect it" (Picoult 285).
The significance of this quote is that it basically sums up the confusing feelings and relationships between Fitz, Eric, and Delia. Fitz loves Delia and wants her as his wife, but he also is best friends with Eric, who is engaged to Delia. If asked to choose between the two, Fitz would say he couldn't decide. The realtionships with each of them are so strong, that living wihtout either one of them would be impossible. Here it seems Delia also has some feelings toward Fitz, but she feels committed to Eric because of Sophie and the fact that they are engaged. Delia compares Fitz to stolen candy, like he was this relief from reality. However, she also wants to be loyal to Eric as shown when her thoughts read "trying to find the same depth of faith". She wants to be as loyal to Eric as he is to her.

8)"'In the case of The State of Arizona versus Andrew Hopkins, we find the defendant not guilty'" (Picoult 411).
This is the resolution of the story, the final statement that frees Andrew from all charges and gives him his life back. This verdict allows Delia and Andrew to start from fresh, leaving no secrets between them. Delia has discovered who her true family is, who her true father is, and that's Andrew. Now they can go home and just start over, which is what they both really need.

Vanishing Acts V

All The Pretty Horses

I didn't think I was going to like this book at first, but I will say it is getting better as the story develops. If I hadn't been reading this for school, i probably would've given up on it at page thirty. I'm very confused about Blevins' character. I don't know whether to think of him as one of the good guys or one of the bad guys. He doesn't seem like a bad person, he just seems like a magnet for trouble. The one thing I can't get my head around is that he killed THREE people. He says that it was in self defense, but it seems John Grady and Rawlins don't buy it. I just don't know what to think about him. Another thing that's confusing me is what actually happened to Rawlins when he was questioned by the captain guard? Did he just get beat up or is there more behind it? And why didn't they beat up John Grady in the same manner? Are these authorative figures real, or are they fake, bad cops? These are all questions that arose while I was reading this particular section. And one more thing, I don't understand flippin' spanish!!!! It's very annoying when there's a whole conversation in spanish and no one bothers to explain what's being said! I really hope i'm not missing anything important, but what can you do? Anyways, thats all.

Vanishing Acts IV

Just for practice, I am going to analyze a passage from my outside reading book, Vanishing Acts, using the TWIST method.

"The three of us walk outside, where it is still cold enough for the promises we are making to crystallize in the air. Eric heads to my car and tucks Delia into the passenger seat, leaning close to speak to her for a moment out of my range of hearing. I imagine him telling her that he loves her, that he will miss her, that when he closes his eyes on the plane her face will be what rises inside of him--all the things I would be saying to her, in his place" (Picoult 68)

Tone: longing, jealousy, regretfull

Word Choice: Picoult's word choice helps reveal Fitz's true feelings kept secretly hidden from his friends. Words and phrases like, "leaning close", "imagine", "rises inside of him", "would", and "in his place". The use of the word "imagine" hints to readers that, for Fitz, being able to say these things to Delia is only a dream, a secret longing to have what Eric has. Also, the use of the word "tucks" brings on a comforting feeling, it reassures the reader that everything will be okay.

Imagery: The first sentence depicts how cold it is outside using language like "cold" and "crystallize", so that the reader can easily feel the setting and relate to it. Other phrases like "leaning close" and "tucks delia into the passsenger seat" are very straight-forward and give a clear picture of the characters' actions.

Style: Picoult uses a very common style of writing. She is very straight-forward, yet descriptive. She uses a lot of irony to make her stories unpredictable, and really develops her characters and what they are feeling. She makes her characters relateable to her audience.

Thematic Ideas: regret, confusion, love

All The Pretty Horses

The book we are reading in class is called All The Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy. We recently learned how to use the TWIST method when analyzing a particular passage. T stands for tone, W for word choice, I for imagery, S for style, and T for theme or thematic idea. Here is an example of the TWIST method used to help analyze the following passage...

"The western sections ran into the Sierra de Anteojo to elevations of nine thousand feet but south and east the ranch occupied part of the broad barrial or basin floor of the bolson and was well watered with natural springs and clear streams and dotted with marshes and shallow lakes or lagunas. In the lakes and in the streams were species of fish not known elsewhere on earth and birds and lizards and other forms of life as well all long relict here for the desert stretched away on every side" (McCarthy 97)

Tone: mysterious, new and unknown, content

Word Choice: words like "clear", "species...not known", "on earth", and "stretched" help to express the author's tone. No sad words are used and its as if this description of John Grady and Rawlins' new home presents them with a new beginning. A fresh start, full of mystery and change.

Imagery: the word choice presented above help the author to create imagery for his readers. The use of very descriptive run-on sentences (style) help the reader become immersed into the setting, so as they can almost picture it. The imagery is also somewhat mysterious and new, enough is revealed that one can clearly picture the setting, but some is also hidden to make the readers want to learn more about this new land.

Style: McCarthy has a particular style to his writing where he lacks much punctuation, and uses a lot of run-on sentences. This style is hard to get used to, but after a while the words just flow and bring the reader deeper into the story, and soon you don't even notice the lack of punctuation.

Thematic ideas: mystery, adventure, a new beginning

Connections Between O'Brother and The Odyssey

There were many similsrities between the movie O' Brother Where Art Thou and Homer's classic epic The Odyssey. Well obviously there would be because the movie is based off of the book. Here's a list of some of them:

Book---- Movie
Return from Trojan War (journey begins)---- Escape from chain gang (fugitives on the run)
Cyclops shows hospitality ----Man with eye-patch invites them to picnic
Cyclops shows brutallity (kills men)---- Man with eye-patch kills "Pete"
Sirens attempt to enchant Odysseus---- Singing women seduce the men
Circe turns men into pigs ----Singing women supposedly turn Pete into frog
Poseidon causes trouble for Odysseus---- Policeman with the glasses hunts them
Suitors court Penelope ----Everett's wife gets engaged to another man
Prophet reveals bird signs---- Blind railcar man helps out and prophesizes
Suitors want to kill Telemachus---- Tommy in trouble with KKK
Odysseus kills suitors ----Everett out-fames his wife's new fiance
Odysseus reaches Ithaca (reward) ----Everett becomes famous and get's wife back

Vanishing Acts III

Perhaps my prediction was wrong. It seems as if Eric really is a good guy and that he had absolutely nothing to do with the kidnapping. In fact, when Andrew (Delia's dad) wanted to plead guilty in court for the kidnapping, Eric, as his attourney, tried to persuade him not to do so. Andrew begins to confess to Eric, but Eric will not let him say anything more because he wants to believe that Andrew is not guilty. Eric knows that if Andrew confesses too much, or anything at all, his case will go down the toilet. Eric has only his family's interests at heart, especially Delia's. She is struggling to come to terms with everything that has happened with her father. Her best friend Fitz brings her old articles on herself and on Bethany Matthews. Apparently, Bethany Matthews was a little 4-year old girl who went missing the same time that a 4-year old girl named Cordelia Hopkins died in a car accident. Delia comes to the conclusion that she actually might be another person, Bethany Matthews, and that her mother may actually still be alive. This thought frightens her and forces her to ask the question: Who am I? Everyone is very confused and troubled at this time. Eric is torn between being a good lawyer by following through with Andrew's request to plead guilty and being a good son-in-law and husband. Eric wants to have Andrew plead not guilty because he feels that the prosecution doesn't have enough evidence to support their case and he really doesn't want Andrew to go to jail leaving behind Delia and his grandaughter Sophie. Delia is torn between who she really is, also whether or not to believe the charges made against Andrew. Finally, Fitz is torn between finding the truth and hurting Delia even more.

The Odyssey: Paper

I thought that I would do some brainstorming for my paper via blog so here is my thesis statement and some quotes i found for my body paragraphs...

Thesis statement : The supernatural figures, in Homer’s The Odyssey, help humans by giving signs, protection, and inspiration, all of which become crucial to Odysseus’ survival.
QUOTES:
“…an omen flew past, an eagle clutching a trembling dove.” (20.270)
“…the eagle killed my geese…called out in a human voice that dried my tears, ‘…the geese were your suitors—and I once the eagle but now I am your husband, back again at last, able to launch a terrible fate against them all.” (19.612-620)
“So clear, so true, that bird sign I saw as I sat on the benched ship and sounded out the future to the prince!” (17.174-176)
“’Look, Telemachus, the will of god just winged that bird on your right...I knew it was a sign. No line more kingly than yours in all of Ithaca—yours will reign forever!” (15.594-597)
“And again the suitors hurled their whetted shafts but Athena sent the better part of the salvo wide…” (22.285-286)
“But Zeus’s daughter Athena countered him at once. The rest of the winds she stopped right in their tracks…” (5.421-422)
“Well, I warn you, you won’t get home yourself, you’ll stay right there, trapped with all the rest. But wait, I can save you, free you from that great danger.” (10.315-317)
Inspiration Quotes:
“But you, I urge you, think how to drive these suitors from your halls. Come now, listen closely. Take my words to heart.” (1.312-314)
“…where he’d have been flayed alive, his bones crushed if the bright-eyed goddess Pallas had not inspired him now. He lunged for a reef, he seized it with both hands and clung for dear life…” (5.470-473)
“Rousing words—but she gave no all-out turning of the tide, not yet, she kept on testing Odysseus and his gallant son…” (22.246-248)

Vanishing Acts II

Delia, a member of the sarch and rescue team in rural New Hampshire, is lost herself. She feels like she doesn't know who she is or what she's becoming. Her marriage is strained and she is constantly worrying about her daughter, Sophie. To top it all off, at the end of the first chapter her dad is being arrested for a kidnapping. Delia, though dealing with a lot at the moment, is certain that there must be some sort of misunderstanding in her father's arrest. For this was the man she grew up with, the man who raised her without a mother, and who has given her all the love in the world by being a wonderful, caring and devoted father. (Her mother died in a car accident when Delia was four.) As if Delia wasn't confused enough, this abrupt event sparks new worry and concern within her to build upon the old worry and concern. I predict that there are certain people who are behind her father's kidnapping, and, personally, I think that one of them is Eric, Delia's husband. The reason I believe this is because when the police were taking Delia's father away, and she was standing there shocked and confused, he said, "Call Eric...He'll know what to do" (Picoult 26). Clearly, there is something mysterious going on between Eric and Delia's father. But what confuses me most is when Delia asks her father who Bethany Matthews (the person who was suppoesedly kidnapped) is and he replies, "You were" (Picoult 26).

Vanishing Acts I

I actually haven't had time to start my book yet, but I'm really looking forward to reading it. The book I chose is called Vanishing Acts by Jodi Picoult. Delia Hopkins is the main character, who's life is changed dramatically after a policeman comes to her door with information that was kept secret until now...

The Odyssey

In the book The Odyssey by the famous Greek poet Homer, an epic hero named Odysseus undergoes many challenges and faces incredible monsters. The characterization of Odysseus portrays him as a brave, determined, adventurous, wise man, who's only flaw is cockiness. His first trait, bravery, is displayed many times throughout the book. One example of this is when he, along with his men, stabs the Cyclops in it's one eye and flees from the island. Odysseus shows that he is determined because he never gives up on trying to reach Ithaca, his home land. He endures unbelievable hardships for twenty years, but never gives up on reaching home. His adventurous trait is quite obvious, for the entire poem relates his adventures, however horrible, on the Mediterranean Sea. Odysseus proves he is wise when he constructs an escape plan for him and his men from the island of the Cyclops. He tells them all to hold onto the bottom of the Cyclop's sheep, that way they are unseen as they exit the cave. However, this epic hero does have a flaw; cockiness. He endangers himself and his entire crew when he shouts his real name back at the Cyclops, after having safely escaped the island. Of course, the Cyclops, Poseidon's son, tells his father about what Odysseus and his men did to him, and Poseidon rages, using the sea as his weapon. Clearly, Odysseus has most of the traits an epic hero would have, but his one flaw could possibly lead to his ruin.

Author's style in The Book Thief

Markus Zusak, the author of The Book Thief, has a very unique and distinct style of writing. First of all, Death is the narrator. That is a strange, but very interesting, point of view. Death does a lot of foreshadowing in his narration. For example he will say things like: "He already cheated me in one world war but would later be put into another (as a perverse kind of reward), where he would somehow manage to avoid me again" (Zusak 33-34). This statement clearly implies that Hans Hubberman will escape death once more in a later chapter, after being thrown into a second world war as a sick form of punishment (see previous post). Also, Death will put important pieces of information in bold and separated from the other text. For instance it would look something like this:
...I watched their stomachs open and the bombs drop casually out. They were off target, of course. They were often off target.

***A SMALL, SAD HOPE***
No one wanted to
bomb Himmel Street.
No one would bomb a
place named after
heaven, would they?
Would they? (Zusak 497-498)

These off settings of important thoughts, ideas, or simple facts are used quite regularily throughout the book. They help the reader to better understand major events in the book, and to think more deeply about them. Plus, they highlight key ideas and concepts brought forth by Zusak.

Zusak is a very talented writer. He made me experience much emotion while reading this book. Some of these emotions were...
*Dissappointment- Rudy and Liesel never kiss. And then its too late.
*Sadness- Liesel loses people she loves.
*Relief- Max and Liesel are reunited. Hans returns from war.
*Compassion- Rosa and Liesel are torn apart when Hans leaves.
*Anger- Jews were treated worse than dirt. Hitler is a maniac.
These are just some of the emotions I experienced. The book had a very powerful story that had a great impact upon me. Overall I would give it nine and a half stars out of ten. I would definitly recommend this exhilerating book.

Completion of The Book Thief

Not quite a happy ending for Liesel Meminger. I won't go into specifics because I don't want to ruin the book, but a warning: it doesn't end happily. Well I guess in one circumstance it does, and that is that Max and Liesel are reunited after their long separation. This separation was caused by an act of Hans Hubberman, not a mean act, but a nice one. This act of kindness and bravery proved to be a very dangerous move on Hans' part, and it will end up tearing Hans from his family and Max from his place of safety. During a parade of Jews (where Jews, on their way to a concentration camp, are paraded through the streets of Munich) Hans steps in and gives one of the struggling Jews a piece of bread. Overwhelmed with thanks, the Jew drops to Hans' feet and thanks him over and over again. Then a soldier comes over to them. The Jew was whipped six times, and Hans four times. Realization hits Hans later when he realizes what could happen to him and his family, not to mention Max (the Jew hidden in his basement). Knowing that "they" will most likely come for him, Hans must make Max leave the house. Hans has shown himself to the public as a "Jew lover", and so his house would definitly be searched for hidden Jews. Hans begs Max's forgiveness, but Max merely says "You've done enough." (Zusak 398). Later on, Hans gets his punishment. He is drafted into the military and forced to clean up after air raids (not to worry though, he is sent home after some number of months with a broken leg. Who would have thought that a broken leg would be the best thing to happen to Hans?). All of this for giving a hungry, dying Jew a piece of stale bread. On that day, the Jews being paraded through the streets witnessed a miracle.

Liesel Meminger

This post is strictly focused on Liesel Meminger, the main character in The Book Thief.


At the beginning of the book Liesel is a scared, timid, and an emotionally scarred child. After witnessing the death of her brother on the train and being separated from her mother (the only family she has left), Liesel shuts down. Every night her dreams are haunted by her brother's death aboard the train. Every night Liesel wakes up screaming, and every night Hans comes in to comfort her and read to her. Liesel develops a strong relationship with Hans and starts to open up to him. Each day Liesel gets more comfortable with her new home and foster parents. She makes friends in the neighborhood, especially with a boy named Rudy. Liesel begins to find happiness through reading, Rudy, soccer, and, of course, stealing books. Liesel makes friends with the mayor's wife, Ilsa Hermann, for whom Rosa Hubberman does the laundry. Ilsa invites Liesel into her home to read books in her library, something Liesel enjoys very much. However, when the Hermanns stop being customers of Rosa, Liesel gets mad and yells at Ilsa. Liesel sort-of apologizes, but still will not accept Ilsa's invitation to read in her library. So instead, Liesel decides to steal from the library. Soon, Ilsa discovers that Liesel is stealing her books, but she is not angry. On the contrary, Ilsa invites her to keep stealing and even leaves a dictionary right next to the window the book thief enters through. Through out the novel, Liesel develops a new relationship with Max (the hidden Jew). Liesel shares nightmares with Max and often keeps him company in the basement. She is devastated when Max is forced to leave. In the end Liesel loses many of the people she loves, but finds comfort when Max returns to her at Ilsa Hermann's house, Liesel's new home. (When Liesel's home and family are destroyed by a bombing, Ilsa takes her in.) Liesel evolves into a strong, but still very emotionally wounded teenager. Liesel still has two rays of light in her clouded life: Max and Ilsa.

The Book Thief (one of many posts by that title)

"'Do you still play the accordian?' Of course, the question was really, 'Will you still help me?'" (Zusak). This quote is important because it sparks the new fear and anxiety within the Hubberman household. Afterall, hiding a Jew is a crime punishable by death. This question, asked by Max Vandenburg, the Jew, marks the start of a new way of living for the Hubbermans. Fear of being caught by members of the Nazi party, the Hubbermans must do everything they can to keep their secret safe. This means Max must live in the cold basement behind a sheet and some paint cans. Liesel is sworn to secrecy by her father, after being told that he can be taken away from her if anyone discovers the jew in the basment. Max gets very sick after being in the cold basement all day everyday, so the Hubbermans decide that, once cured, he should come upstairs each night to warm up and get a change of scenery. During the days that Max is unconcious from sickness, Liesel collects gifts for him, in hope that they will help him wake up and get better. These gifts consisted of a destroyed soccer ball, a ribbon, a pinecone, a button, a stone, a feather, two newspapers, a candy wrapper, a cloud described on a piece of paper, a toy soldier, a miraculous leaf, and also Liesel read her book The Whistler to Max. A deep relationship formed between Max and Liesel. They shared nightmares with eachother, and Liesel would, very often, visit Max in the basement to keep him company. As a birthday gift, Max wrote and illustrated a book called The Standover Man for Liesel. Max's book defined his and Liesel's realtionship in a story. Here's a quote from the story: "Now I think we are friends, this girl and me. On her birthday, it was she who gave a gift-to me."

Much Ado About Nothing

Thus far in the play, Hero has been successfully wooed for Claudio, even with the evil Don John trying to cause trouble with Claudio by telling him the Prince only wants Hero for himself. Also, Leonato, Don Pedro, and Claudio trick Benedick into falling in love with Beatrice. They do this by making sure that Benedick overhears them talking of the great love Beatrice has for him, and how, even though her tongue is sharp, she is just expressing her love for him. Hero and Ursula do the same with Beatrice, making sure that she overhaers them talking of Benedick's deep love for Beatrice. Both tricks are successfull and Beatrice falls in love with Benedick, and he with Beatrice. All this happiness makes Don John unhappy, he only wants to cause havoc and discomfort. So, he makes a devious little plan with Borachio and Conrade. This plan will, to their hope, break apart Claudio and Hero and therefore make Don Pedro unhappy (which I believe is their ultimate goal). The plan consists of Borachio having relations with Margaret, Hero's lady in waiting, in Hero's bed chamber. BUT, instead of Margaret being Margaret, she will act as Hero. Don John will make sure that Claudio can hear Borachio call Margaret "Hero"(and vice versa) in their love making and consequently destroy the young relationship. Will the plan work? Technically in comedies, everything turns out for the best, so we already know that everything will work out between Claudio and Hero. But we don't know how this conflict will be solved.

The Book Thief

For a class assignmanet Liesel is asked to write two letters, one to a friend and one to somenone in the another class. Liesel chose to write one of these letters to her mama. Not Rosa Hubberman though, her birth mama. Liesel spent hours in the basement, while her father painted, working on the perfect letter to send to her mama. In the letter she told mama about everything she had encountered since their separation. Since she didn't have her mama's address, Liesel was encouraged to give her letter to Frau Diller, who was the woman who brought Liesel to the Hubberman's home and worked with the foster agency. Then she started waiting. Each day Liesel would check the mail box for any letter from her mama. Later, Liesel overheard her foster parents talking about her mama:
"What was she doing writing to her mother?"...
"She asked me," Papa answered, "and I couldn't say no. How could I?"
"Jesus, Mary, and Joseph." Again with the whisper. "she should just forget her. Who knows where she is? Who knows what they've done to her?

Liesel is once again forced to ask herself:
"Where was she?
What had they done to her?
And once and for all, who, in actual fact, were they?"

Shakespeare

In class, we are in the midst of reading Much Ado About Nothing, a comedy by Shakespeare. So far I am enjoying the play very much. The handsome war-hero, Claudio, has fallen deeply in love with the beautiful, doting daughter of Leonato, Hero. Leonato is keeping Don Pedro, the prince, as well as Claudio and Benedick as guests in his home, for they have recently returned from battle. Also staying with Leonato is Don Pedro's half-brother, Don John the bastard and his two comrades Borachio and Conrade. Don John is the villain in the story and wants to cause trouble and discorde, for the discomfort of his half-brother. When he hears that Claudio wants Hero's hand in marriage, and that Claudio and Don Pedro have planned a way to woo her and talk with Leonato about the marriage, he wants to do whatever he can to make sure the marriage doesn't happen. The reason he wants to do this, is because he is a mean guy, it's just in his nature. The plan that Don Pedro and Claudio have conjured to win Hero over is as follows: Don Pedro will woo Hero in Claudio's name at the masked ball, and also talk to her father about the marriage. Then once Hero is won over, Claudio will take Don Pedro's place as himself. Clearly, there are many ways Don John can cause confusion and mayhem at the masked ball, and that's exactly what he intends to do.

The Book Thief Update

Rudy Steiner, Liesel's new friend and companion, has this strange obsession with the olympic runner Jesse Owens. This 4-time gold-medalist had a real impact upon the young Rudy, and there is a certain incident that the people of Himmel Street will never forget. Though this incident happened before Liesel's arrival, she feels that she was there when it happened, because she can picture it perfectly. The incident was so bizarre that it would be hard to ever forget. After Rudy's family watches Jesse win his 4 gold medals, Rudy dashes into the kitchen and smears charcoal all over his body, so that it covers every inch of his white skin. He then headed out the door to the Hubert Oval. Upon arrival at the track, Rudy begins his uncoordinated stretches. Impersonating Jesse Owens, he takes off down the track, commentating on himself the entire time. He imagines the crowd chanting his name, which at this moment was no longer Rudy, but instead he was the unbeatable Jesse Owens. Rudy realizes he is in trouble when he sees his father standing at the finish line waiting for him. On the way home Rudy's father lectures him about his strange behavior. The discussion leads to Rudy's father telling him to never ever again paint himself black. When Rudy asks why not, his father tells him "Because they'll take you away" (Zusak 60) Again Rudy asks why, and his father tries to explain that anyone who isn't "like them" is not safe. Blacks and Jews especially. Here's a small section from the reading that had a great impact on me...
"Mr. Steiner...explained, 'I know son--but you've got beautiful blond hair and big, safe blue eyes. You should be hapy with that; is that clear?' But nothing was clear. Rudy understood nothing, and that night was the prelude of things to come. Two and a half years later, the Kaufmann Shoe Shop was reduced to broken glass, and all the shoes were flung aboard a truck in their boxes" (Zusak 61).

END OF RESEARCH PAPER and start of Shakespeare

The research paper unit is finally over! I believe that my research paper was definitely my best paper of this school year, and hopefully I will recieve a very high grade that reflects the time and effort I put into this paper. Ms. West asked us to complete a reflection on our papers, after we turned them into the wire basket. We were asked various questions about what we thought of our paper, also we were asked to make a list of the steps we would take to write another research paper. These are the steps that I would follow:
1) Find a topic that interests you.
2) Find atleast 5 credible sources for that topic.
3) Annotate all your sources.
4) Make an informal outline that will help structure the paragraphs in your paper.
5) Write notes for key information that you annotated in your sources. (paraphrase, quote, summarize)
6) Design a Flee Map that will help to better organize each paragraph and help you to lay out exactly what you will say in your paper.
7) Construct a rough draft to be edited.
8) Write your final draft.
These steps will prove to be very useful later on in my college career. After all research papers were turned in with our reflections, we started a movie all about Shakespeare. I enjoyed the movie very much. The most interesting thing I learned from it is that we actually don't know a lot about Shakepeare. I think they said in the movie that we only actually know 3 things about him. That's so weird because he's one of the most famous names in history and literature.